1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to a method for making a transparent carbon nanotube composite film.
2. Description of Related Art
Carbon nanotubes are tubules of carbon generally having diameters ranging from 0.5 nanometers to 100 nanometers. Carbon nanotubes have recently attracted a great deal of attention for use in different applications such as field emitters, gas storage and separation, chemical sensors, and high strength composites, because of their thermal, electrical, and mechanical properties.
However, because carbon nanotubes are microscopic structures, it is necessary to assemble the carbon nanotubes into macroscopic structures. A carbon nanotube film is one kind of macroscopic structure of carbon nanotubes.
Recently, as disclosed by the pre-grant publication US20080248235 to Feng et al., a free-standing carbon nanotube film has been fabricated. The carbon nanotube film can be used in many different fields. For example, the carbon nanotube film can be used as a transparent conductive film in a touch panel or a liquid display.
This kind of carbon nanotube film is very thin and can have certain transmittance in macroscopic view. However, in microscopic view, the carbon nanotubes in the carbon nanotube film are not entirely attached on the surface of the carbon nanotube film. For example, some portions of the carbon nanotubes in the carbon nanotube film will protrude from the general surface/plane of carbon nanotube film, which makes the surface of carbon nanotube film relatively rough. When the light irradiates the rough surface of carbon nanotube film, a portion of the light will scatter, decreasing the transmittance of the carbon nanotube film. Similarly, the same problem also exists on a carbon nanotube layer including a plurality of stacked carbon nanotube films.
What is needed, therefore, is to provide a method for making a transparent carbon nanotube composite film, which can overcome the above-described shortcomings.